Julius Berger named best construction company at West Africa Innovation Awards

By Abubakar Yunusa

Julius Berger Nigeria Plc has named as the best construction and infrastructure company of the decade at an award ceremony organised by the West Africa Innovation Awards.

According to a statement on Monday, the ceremony was held on recently in Lagos, to promote excellence, creativity and innovation among brands and professionals in the West African subregion.

The statement said Julius Berger came top ahead of two other companies from the sector.

Cammil Chineme, the chairman of the award organising committee, said Julius Berger is worth celebrating for its core values, professionalism and a strong record of persistence in its operations.

“We salute your professional prowess; we salute your courage and uncommon professionalism causing you to move from one conquest to another and for winning this Diamond Award for Customer Service Excellence,” the chairman said.

Chinese said the West Africa Innovation Awards is making a name in identifying real industry leaders in West Africa and appreciating them accordingly.

Receiving the award, Abdulaziz Kaita, Julius Berger’s director of administration, appreciated the organisers for the prize as he shared part of the company’s success story in Nigeria.

According to the statement, Kaita said Julius Berger has been in Nigeria for more than 50 years.

“We built the first bridge in Lagos in 1965. And that bridge, Eko Bridge, still stands solidly till today, despite all the vehicular and traffic pressure on it,” the director was quoted as saying.

“We began the unique cold recycling tecnology in building roads for Nigeria. It saves about 90% of resources that go into construction works.

“That technology has been so successful that it is now being studied as a course in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.”

Kaita also clarified that contrary to what has been “sold” to the Nigerian public, Julius Berger International is a subsidiary of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc.